3-2-1: Mark Ingram one of four players ranked inside the NFL Top 100
On Monday and Tuesday, most NFL players should report for duty for the first time ahead of the 2020 season. The hope is that players can begin returning to a somewhat regular routine after an offseason that has been limited to virtual meetings, and more recently, COVID-19 testing.
Today, we provide you with three things we’ve learned about Alabama’s players in the NFL, ask two questions, and make one prediction about a rookie quarterback named Tua Tagovailoa.
Maybe you've heard of him?
Three things we've learned
1. Four players announced on NFL Network's Top 100
Forty spots remain on the list, but Alabama has already placed four on the annual Top 100 list, determined based on votes from current NFL players.
Baltimore running back Mark Ingram has the top spot so far checking in at No. 44. Ingram ranked 80th last season but got a boost after carrying the ball 202 times for 1,018 yards and 10 touchdowns. He also scored five times as a receiver.
Dallas wide receiver Amari Cooper ranked 49th after placing 64th a year ago. He caught 79 passes in 2019, which helped him set two career-highs with 1,189 receiving yards and eight touchdowns.
Las Vegas running back Josh Jacobs made his debut on the list in the No. 72 spot after a stellar rookie season. He carried the ball 242 times for 1,150 yards and seven touchdowns.
It took Marlon Humphrey a little longer than Jacobs, but he finally cracked the top 100 with his ranking of 86th.
He posted that months before entering the league. Humphrey earned his spot on the list after he recorded 62 tackles, 50 solo. Both of those marks nearly equaled his career totals from the first two years combined.
He also intercepted three passes, forced two fumbles and returned a pair of fumbles for touchdowns.
2. Washington’s new name might as well be the Crimson Tide
On Thursday, the team announced it would officially be known as the Washington Football Team until a permanent name is found.
It’s simple, as are the new uniforms, shown below along with some familiar faces.
Defensive linemen DaRon Payne and Jonathan Allen are just two nine former Alabama players currently on Washington’s roster.
In case you forgot, the rest of the list includes:
- S Landon Collins
- LB Reuben Foster
- LB Ryan Anderson
- LB Shaun Dion Hamilton
- WR Cam Sims
- TE Hale Hentges
- OL Ross Pierschbacher
The uniforms share a classic look that makes it easy to picture all of these guys making plays back inside Bryant-Denny Stadium.
3. Alabama trio among first to opt out of 2020 NFL season
On Monday afternoon, Seattle Seahawks beat writer Greg Bell reported that Warmack would sit out the season due to COVID-19 concerns.
It seems fair to conclude that Warmack’s desire to play it safe stems from personal experience with the virus. The report indicates that the virus hospitalized several family friends. It also stated that Warmack “lost a family member to COVID.”
It turns out he was just the first. On Tuesday morning, Patriots linebacker Donta Hightower and Ravens offensive tackle Andre Smith also opted out.
Hightower was set to make $8 million this season.
All three of the players' contracts will not be paid out this season. They will instead roll over into next year, although teams could choose to cut guys under whatever normal penalties are stated in each deal.
NFL players who sit out the season due to COVID-19 concerns will also receive $150,000 as an advance payment against their current deals.
Two Questions
1. Will Julio Jones or Amari Cooper score more touchdowns in 2020?
Jones will likely be the favorite for many, and that’s understandable. He’s hauled in 162 more receptions than Cooper has since he entered the league in 2015. Jones is also up 2,698 receiving yards over that same stretch.
Despite all that, Cooper has scored 33 touchdowns since 2015, while Jones has only scored 31.
Cooper scored eight times in 2019 while Jones only hauled in six touchdowns. Since Cooper joined the Cowboys 25 games ago, he’s scored 14 times. Jones has matched that total exactly over his last 25 regular-season games.
History says it will be close, but I’m not scared of CeeDee Lamb stealing work away from Cooper, and the Cowboys offense should be significantly more impressive, so Cooper is my choice here.
2. Will Alabama players see the field more in 2020 due to the pandemic?
It's tough to predict how COVID-19 will impact specific players, but due to the nature of the position quarterbacks AJ McCarron and Jalen Hurts could hear their names called on more often.
McCarron started for the Texans in week 17 last season when Houston rested multiple starters. He completed 21 of 36 passes for 225 yards and one pick. The former Alabama quarterback’s last meaningful action came in 2015 when he started four games for the Bengals.
Philadelphia quarterback Carson Wentz hasn’t had the best luck lately.
He’s missed eight regular season playoff games and six playoff contests in the last three seasons. The ongoing pandemic should make it harder than ever for NFL teams to keep their starting signal callers healthy this time around.
Hopefully for his sake, Wentz can turn things around this season, but if he should miss time Hurts should get a shot.
One prediction
1. Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa will assume the starting role by week four.
From 2015-19, NFL teams drafted 16 quarterbacks in the first round. Those quarterbacks waited for 3.6 games on average to assume the starting spot.
Only four guys on the list sat more than four games: Patrick Mahomes (15), Lamar Jackson (9), Jared Goff (9) and Dwayne Haskins (8).
Of that group, Goff is the only guy to get drafted sooner than 10th.
Ten of the 16 quarterbacks on the original list went seventh overall or higher. It took these guys only 1.8 games on average to take over.
The Miami Dolphins drafted Tagovailoa fifth overall to be the face of the franchise. It’s going to be hard to do that from the bench.
Yes, there’s some lingering injury concerns. That’s partly why I’m giving him an extra game or two, but Tagovailoa insists he’s fine.
“I’d say I’m ready to go,” Tagovailoa said to USA Today’s Chris Bumbaca. “It’s kind of those things where you start getting the itch to get back out on the field, to be able to compete. It’s going to be a new setting, so that’s what’s even more exciting.”
Earlier this month, Miami Dolphins coach Brian Flores told Hal Habib of the Palm Beach Post that he wouldn’t form any expectations concerning Tagovailoa’s role this season until he saw him in the huddle.
He can play it cool all he wants. If Tagovailoa is healthy, and I believe he is, he should see the field sooner rather than later.
Recent history doesn’t just tell us that, it screams it.
The only thing that could mess up my prediction is quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick. He successfully held off Josh Rosen last season for two games, but Fitzpatrick won the job back within a month.
He might be one of the best backups in the league at this point, but Fitzpatrick is not the future of the franchise and, sooner or later, the Dolphins will need to usher in the next generation.
I think that changing of the guard officially happens by week four. Miami’s opponent that week, the Seattle Seahawks, might not be the best team to face in your first start. However, the Dolphins will have a long week to get him ready after the team faces Jacksonville on Thursday night during week three.
Plus, that sounds a lot better than starting the former Alabama quarterback for the first time in week five at San Francisco.
